Tampa paper: Jacksonville's infrastructure neglect

[Adam White]

Perfect timing Tampa.....I wonder if this has ANYTHING to do with Amazon looking for HQ2? Tampa...well played! So next week, we'll get an article about Miami several flooding issues. Then Orlando...then Atlanta....goes on and goes on. Why else would Tampa bash another Florida city? (Jags vs Buds Rivalry maybe?!?!) lol I'm just stating my opinion...

You might want to loosen your tinfoil hat.

No tinfoil hat here but the article is odd. Irma takes a late turn to the east or TB is likely screwed.
Maybe they were just bitter about this article?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/health/environment/tampa-bay-climate-change/?utm_term=.4c4a682120fa

You guys make me sad.

[Tacachale]

"Nope. Brown had a year and a half to get this organized - something his administration applied for. When Curry got in in 2015, none of the groundwork or planning was done. They did make an effort on it initially, but pulled out it in favor of other priorities. In hindsight it would have been good to keep it, but it would have been even better if the guy whose inititiative it actually was had made a real go of it."

They pulled out in favor of other priorities.   Please give some details, Tacachale.  I assume you work in city government so you fill us in on what was given priority and what specifically has been done. 

Honestly, $1 million would do almost nothing for a city this size.  Our current leadership (Curry and Scott) have adopted the official Republican position:  ignore it.

I don't work in city government. I do read the news. Here is a story about it.

http://news.wjct.org/post/jacksonville-drops-out-rockefeller-foundations-100-resilient-cities

The link doesn't lend any credence to the contention that Brown dropped the ball, only that Curry was going to pursue it and then choose not to or later choose to ignored it.

That was two years after the Brown administration applied for the grant and then failed to make the necessary plans for it.

[acme54321]

It's funny for a city that has flooding issues Everytime the wind blows the wrong way to call us out.  What a joke.

We receive the highest surge ever recorded and some areas flood...  Shocking.  Less shocking is that most of the areas that flooded are built on reclaimed river or marshland

[thelakelander]

Great article. I loved it. Social equity, in regards to infrastructure investment is a big problem that most cities (including both Jax and Tampa) have long ignored. Hopefully, we can address our problems to the fullest before he get hit directly.

[Steve]

I think the social inequality aspect is right on. I'm not sure who's administration is at fault, but the poorer sections of town have definitely been shortchanged. Basic drainage is something well within the ability of a City Government.

However, they do glaze over the River rising. If the river spills it's banks, nothing short of constructing levee's on either side of the river for the length of it is going to help that scenario. I have no idea if the river has risen materially. If it has, then this is something that likely will have to be funded by Uncle Sam.

[Adam White]

You guys are priceless. This isn't a city "calling out another city". And it's investigative journalism. Your need to look for a conspiracy theory or motive to explain this is embarrassing.

[CityLife]

COJ could likely solve (or at least minimize) a lot of the flooding issues in low income neighborhoods with CDBG money. The City gets millions and millions in dollars of federal CDBG money every year and struggles to properly administer it. I used to manage Atlantic Beach's CDBG projects and was able to get around $1 million to improve drainage in a low income neighborhood off Mayport Road. This was money well above and beyond what COJ was required to give us (as part of a local interlocal agreement). COJ was looking for signature projects to be able to tout as successes to feds, so we got leftover CDBG funds for our project. Our project has been completed and solved flooding issues in an area that routinely flooded.

COJ could easily craft a long term plan to utilize a portion of it's annual CDBG funds on drainage projects in low income neighborhoods (the only place CDBG funds can be spent anyways). However, I'm not sure if the community groups and non-profits that rely on CDBG funds would allow that to happen.

[tufsu1]

Perfect timing Tampa.....I wonder if this has ANYTHING to do with Amazon looking for HQ2? Tampa...well played! So next week, we'll get an article about Miami several flooding issues. Then Orlando...then Atlanta....goes on and goes on. Why else would Tampa bash another Florida city? (Jags vs Buds Rivalry maybe?!?!) lol I'm just stating my opinion...

You might want to loosen your tinfoil hat.

No tinfoil hat here but the article is odd. Irma takes a late turn to the east or TB is likely screwed.
Maybe they were just bitter about this article?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/health/environment/tampa-bay-climate-change/?utm_term=.4c4a682120fa

The Times has been angling for quite some time to be a statewide paper....and with the highest circulation in Florida, they are on the way.

In that guise, they often do stories on other areas of the state. I see nothing wrong with them writing the article.

[tufsu1]

"Nope. Brown had a year and a half to get this organized - something his administration applied for. When Curry got in in 2015, none of the groundwork or planning was done. They did make an effort on it initially, but pulled out it in favor of other priorities. In hindsight it would have been good to keep it, but it would have been even better if the guy whose inititiative it actually was had made a real go of it."

They pulled out in favor of other priorities.   Please give some details, Tacachale.  I assume you work in city government so you fill us in on what was given priority and what specifically has been done. 

Honestly, $1 million would do almost nothing for a city this size.  Our current leadership (Curry and Scott) have adopted the official Republican position:  ignore it.

I don't work in city government. I do read the news. Here is a story about it.

http://news.wjct.org/post/jacksonville-drops-out-rockefeller-foundations-100-resilient-cities

The link doesn't lend any credence to the contention that Brown dropped the ball, only that Curry was going to pursue it and then choose not to or later choose to ignored it.

That was two years after the Brown administration applied for the grant and then failed to make the necessary plans for it.

they applied for the grant in 2013 - when was it awarded?

[Tacachale]

"Nope. Brown had a year and a half to get this organized - something his administration applied for. When Curry got in in 2015, none of the groundwork or planning was done. They did make an effort on it initially, but pulled out it in favor of other priorities. In hindsight it would have been good to keep it, but it would have been even better if the guy whose inititiative it actually was had made a real go of it."

They pulled out in favor of other priorities.   Please give some details, Tacachale.  I assume you work in city government so you fill us in on what was given priority and what specifically has been done. 

Honestly, $1 million would do almost nothing for a city this size.  Our current leadership (Curry and Scott) have adopted the official Republican position:  ignore it.

I don't work in city government. I do read the news. Here is a story about it.

http://news.wjct.org/post/jacksonville-drops-out-rockefeller-foundations-100-resilient-cities

The link doesn't lend any credence to the contention that Brown dropped the ball, only that Curry was going to pursue it and then choose not to or later choose to ignored it.

That was two years after the Brown administration applied for the grant and then failed to make the necessary plans for it.

they applied for the grant in 2013 - when was it awarded?

We were selected in December 2013.

http://www.coj.net/departments/public-affairs/headlines/jacksonville-tapped-as-inaugural-city-in-100-resil

[Tacachale]

COJ could likely solve (or at least minimize) a lot of the flooding issues in low income neighborhoods with CDBG money. The City gets millions and millions in dollars of federal CDBG money every year and struggles to properly administer it. I used to manage Atlantic Beach's CDBG projects and was able to get around $1 million to improve drainage in a low income neighborhood off Mayport Road. This was money well above and beyond what COJ was required to give us (as part of a local interlocal agreement). COJ was looking for signature projects to be able to tout as successes to feds, so we got leftover CDBG funds for our project. Our project has been completed and solved flooding issues in an area that routinely flooded.

COJ could easily craft a long term plan to utilize a portion of it's annual CDBG funds on drainage projects in low income neighborhoods (the only place CDBG funds can be spent anyways). However, I'm not sure if the community groups and non-profits that rely on CDBG funds would allow that to happen.

That could be a good idea. Any planning, really, would be an improvement over the situation we've got now.

Perfect timing Tampa.....I wonder if this has ANYTHING to do with Amazon looking for HQ2? Tampa...well played! So next week, we'll get an article about Miami several flooding issues. Then Orlando...then Atlanta....goes on and goes on. Why else would Tampa bash another Florida city? (Jags vs Buds Rivalry maybe?!?!) lol I'm just stating my opinion...

You might want to loosen your tinfoil hat.

No tinfoil hat here but the article is odd. Irma takes a late turn to the east or TB is likely screwed.
Maybe they were just bitter about this article?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/health/environment/tampa-bay-climate-change/?utm_term=.4c4a682120fa

The Times has been angling for quite some time to be a statewide paper....and with the highest circulation in Florida, they are on the way.

In that guise, they often do stories on other areas of the state. I see nothing wrong with them writing the article.

Ok, that makes sense. With how worthless the FTU is, I guess I don't blame them for going after Jax.

The disaster was also statewide and the way it affected Jacksonville could affect the Bay Area similarly in the future. They got lucky that the damage wasn't worse this time (and we got unlucky). There's probably also a certain element of finding bad news about competitor cities, but it's a legit thing to write a story about.

[Adam White]

COJ could likely solve (or at least minimize) a lot of the flooding issues in low income neighborhoods with CDBG money. The City gets millions and millions in dollars of federal CDBG money every year and struggles to properly administer it. I used to manage Atlantic Beach's CDBG projects and was able to get around $1 million to improve drainage in a low income neighborhood off Mayport Road. This was money well above and beyond what COJ was required to give us (as part of a local interlocal agreement). COJ was looking for signature projects to be able to tout as successes to feds, so we got leftover CDBG funds for our project. Our project has been completed and solved flooding issues in an area that routinely flooded.

COJ could easily craft a long term plan to utilize a portion of it's annual CDBG funds on drainage projects in low income neighborhoods (the only place CDBG funds can be spent anyways). However, I'm not sure if the community groups and non-profits that rely on CDBG funds would allow that to happen.

That could be a good idea. Any planning, really, would be an improvement over the situation we've got now.

Perfect timing Tampa.....I wonder if this has ANYTHING to do with Amazon looking for HQ2? Tampa...well played! So next week, we'll get an article about Miami several flooding issues. Then Orlando...then Atlanta....goes on and goes on. Why else would Tampa bash another Florida city? (Jags vs Buds Rivalry maybe?!?!) lol I'm just stating my opinion...

You might want to loosen your tinfoil hat.

No tinfoil hat here but the article is odd. Irma takes a late turn to the east or TB is likely screwed.
Maybe they were just bitter about this article?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/health/environment/tampa-bay-climate-change/?utm_term=.4c4a682120fa

The Times has been angling for quite some time to be a statewide paper....and with the highest circulation in Florida, they are on the way.

In that guise, they often do stories on other areas of the state. I see nothing wrong with them writing the article.

Ok, that makes sense. With how worthless the FTU is, I guess I don't blame them for going after Jax.

The disaster was also statewide and the way it affected Jacksonville could affect the Bay Area similarly in the future. They got lucky that the damage wasn't worse this time (and we got unlucky). There's probably also a certain element of finding bad news about competitor cities, but it's a legit thing to write a story about.

The flooding in Jacksonville made the international press. It was some of the most visually jarring footage from the hurricane (for the state of Florida). It was kind of a big deal. And when you consider that Jax wasn't hit by the hurricane, it's an even bigger deal. I can see why this prompted a newspaper to do an investigation. And, to mirror Sanmarcomatt's comments, this is rightly something the FTU should've done - but that would be expecting far too much of them.

[Tacachale]

^The Times-Union ran many stories on Irma and its aftermath. Nate Monroe especially did a very good job on it. For whatever reason, those weren't the articles linked here.

[Adam White]

^The Times-Union ran many stories on Irma and its aftermath. Nate Monroe especially did a very good job on it. For whatever reason, those weren't the articles linked here.

Did the TU do stories about the gov't not funding necessary infrastructural work (in the wake of the flooding)? Honest question - I have no idea.

[Transman]

I do infrastructure work.  A million dollars is really not much money, by the time you pay the engineers, hire a contractor and inspectors it really won't go very far.  But still, the city could always use any amount of money.

The city is basically a wholly owned subsidiary of the Police and Fire Department and their pensions, that is where all of the money goes.  The city has not spent hardly anything for capital improvements for years, they just don't have the funds.  The Better Jacksonville Plan still has to pay off the bonds, so anything big will be years away.

I also agree on the money needs to be spent on inter-city neighborhoods.  Highest on the list is the replacement of septic tanks, which don't help the river and better drainage in these areas.  Old areas have smaller pipes or no pipes so it tends to flood in a hard rain, just like downtown St. Augustine.